A case study on hiring a senior marketer who could own strategy, performance, and retention
About Ride The Wave
Ride The Wave is a marketing and lead generation company that specializes in helping small and local businesses grow through community-driven organic strategies, particularly by tapping into the power of engaged social spaces like Facebook groups. Their approach is built around authentic engagement that increases brand awareness, generates leads, and builds trust in local markets.
Their work has supported more than 200 small businesses and contributed to over $10 million in revenue growth for clients.
The Problem
As Ride The Wave grew, its founder, Daniel, found himself too deep in the day-to-day marketing operations.
The company’s success depended on:
- consistent lead generation
- strategic campaign planning
- message optimization
- performance tracking
- adapting quickly to trends in community engagement
What started as a founder-led strategy became a bottleneck. Daniel was:
- executing campaigns
- adjusting tactics
- troubleshooting performance issues
- managing junior staff
- reacting instead of leading
In a competitive environment where organic reach and client retention matter, this operational drag limited growth. The company needed someone who could own the marketing function — not just execute tasks — and free Daniel to focus on scaling the business.
What They Needed
Ride The Wave was looking for a senior marketer who could:
- lead the marketing strategy end-to-end
- be accountable for KPIs, not just activities
- coach and coordinate with other team members
- build and refine systems that drove consistent results
- Take initiative instead of reacting to direction
This was a strategic hire, not an operational assistant. The goal was ownership of outcomes, not a container of tasks.
The Hiring Decision
Through Pavago, Ride The Wave hired a Marketing A-Player who met these criteria.
The hire was someone with:
- experience leading performance marketing
- strategic vision matched with execution capability
- a proactive mindset toward client outcomes
- the ability to work independently but collaboratively
This was an internal hire, embedded into the team with real responsibility for performance, not a contractor or an agency.
What Changed
Once the new marketing lead was in place, the operational landscape shifted quickly.
Instead of Daniel managing, reviewing, and troubleshooting every campaign, the new hire:
- took full responsibility for planning and executing marketing strategies
- monitored metrics and adjusted approach based on performance data
- worked with the rest of the team to align messaging and execution
- proactively identified opportunities for optimization
- communicated results clearly and regularly
This transition meant two things:
- Marketing performance improved and became more consistent because someone was truly accountable.
- Daniel’s time was freed up to focus on higher-value activities like business development, partnerships, and scaling systems.
ROI in Practical Terms
The return here is about leverage and growth capacity, not cost savings alone.
1. Founder Time Shifted to Growth
With a high-level marketer owning strategy and performance, Daniel was no longer stuck in execution. He could:
- pursue strategic partnerships
- explore new channels and offerings
- refine and expand Ride The Wave’s value proposition
That shift increases the company’s ability to grow revenue faster than it could when the founder was buried in operations.
2. Predictable Marketing Performance
Before the hire, marketing outcomes were tied to Daniel’s attention, which varied based on context and capacity. After the hire:
- campaigns ran with clearer ownership
- KPIs were tracked consistently
- improvements happened faster and without prompting
That kind of predictable performance supports better business planning, client retention, and pricing decisions.
3. More High-Quality Client Work
With someone owning the strategy, the rest of the team could support execution more effectively. Clients received a more coherent experience, which helps retention in industries known for high churn.
The result is not just more efficient marketing, but marketing that strengthens the business’s core revenue engine.
Why This Worked
This worked because the hire was centered around leadership, not tasks.
Ride The Wave did not hire for throughput. They hired for ownership, accountability, and strategic execution.
The person brought in was empowered to:
- make decisions
- Align campaigns with business goals
- lead instead of follow
- contribute directly to outcomes
That is a fundamentally different hire than a task-level execution role.
Pavago’s Role
Pavago did not run Ride The Wave’s marketing.
Our role was to:
- identify candidates with the right blend of strategy + accountability
- screen for performance ownership, not just technical experience
- support the hiring and onboarding process so expectations were clear from day one
The value was not in volume. It was in finding someone who could truly own the function.
The Takeaway
Ride The Wave did not hire offshore to save money.
They hired offshore to unlock strategic capacity, protect leadership focus, and establish a marketing function that could scale.
Once marketing had a true owner, the founder could focus on growth, the team could operate more autonomously, and the business shifted into a higher gear.
And that is how a company moves from execution mode to growth mode.
Build a High-Ownership Team Like Ride The Wave
